by Jon Partridge
Based on the novel by Tom Perotta, the first season of The Leftovers, adapted by Damon Lindelof for HBO, was a polarizing show. An emotional rollercoaster, a bleak venture that layered mystery upon mystery with a lack of answers over its central plot alienating some. Yet many saw beyond this, myself included, and praised it as one of the most exciting and affecting shows of the year. Set three years after an event where 2% of the world’s population vanished, the first season focused on the Garvey family and their life in the town of Mapleton, New York. Like the rest of the world, their lives having been affected by the “Sudden Departure”. Living in a world where grief as well as the debate over the meaning of their being left sparking social unrest and much philosophical debate.
Now new on Blu-ray, the second season is something of a departure (forgive the pun) from the first with Perolta and Lindelof having together crafted a new chapter in the tale. After the disappearances, it was found that one small town, Jarden, Texas, was spared any losses. Situated within Miracle National Park, it has become a beacon, drawing people from across the country. Some are determined to find safety while others seek to drive home a reminder that in spite of seeing no departures, Miracle is anything but untouched by the events. Using funds from the sale of their home, Kevin Garvey together with daughter Jill (Margaret Qualley), girlfriend Nora (Carrie Coon) and their adopted child Lily, uproot from Mapleton and relocate to this sanctuary. There they are reunited with Nora’s bother Reverend Matt Jamison (Christopher Eccleston) and his catatonic wife Mary (Janel Moloney) who have moved their through their Church connections. Upon their arrival they meet new neighbors and townfolk who despite not losing anybody that fateful day, have their own issues bubbling under the surface.
Some viewers found the first season’s subject matter, weighty emotions and existential questions hard to digest. Others labelled it as another Lost, pointing fingers at the showrunner connection in Lindelof and a mounting mystery, something that would keep digging deeper and deeper but never providing any answers, infuriating some from the start.
Shame on them, The Leftovers isn’t about the answers, its about the aftermath of this event and the journey undertaken by these characters we follow. Where did their loved ones go is a question but most crucially, why did they not go with them? Loss and guilt spark the show but how each person copes is where things get really interesting. The Leftovers is a complicated endeavor that requires thought and an embrace that is likely to leave the viewer in a darker emotional state. Its certainly a hard watch at times but ultimately a very affecting and rewarding one.
The second season saw a few changes to the show, notably geographical but also in terms of focus. Motivations and themes are more evident, core characters are fully formed, seemingly disparate plotlines logically converge and build to a powerful finale. Still, mysteries remain and some portions of the show could come straight out of the mind of David Lynch. Lost purgatory theorists will find much to appreciate and analyze here. While still intimate, with its small town setting, it’s a remarkably familiar and comfortable backdrop that makes the events that transpire all the more powerful. The town of Jarden is a fully fleshed out place that bears the scars of the departure in a vastly different way to the first season’s Mapleton. It has become both tourist attraction and a place of pilgrimage, requiring heightened security and special passes for entry and residency. The rules of this enclosed society are fascinating, as is the behavior of its residents. Why is a man walking into a diner and slaughtering a goat?; why is a woman walking around in her wedding gown?; why does another woman bury a dead bird in the forest each day? This is a place built on false beliefs and hopes. The disappearance of three young girls sets in motion a fear that they are not to be left untouched making them question their arrogance and presumption they were special.
The focus remains on Kevin Garvey, dealing with the aftermath of the Guilty Remnant cult leader Patti Levin’s (Ann Dowd) suicide at the end of last season. Her presence persists in the form of a ghost that tortures Kevin’s psyche providing some of the more surreal moments in the season. Nora continues to deal with the departure of her whole family and her potentially being the cause whilst Reverend Matt (the exceptional Christopher Eccleston) is on a mission to rewaken his catatonic wife Mary (Janel Molony) who apparently awoke briefly on the first night in Miracle, a fact most people treat with disbelief. Laurie (Amy Brenneman) and Tom Garvey (Chris Zylka) work to undermine the Guilty Remnant, a cult to which they used to belong while Meg Abbott (Liv Tyler) looking to increase its potency through forming a radical new splinter group.
The counterpoint to these established cast members is the new towns-people of Jarden, notably the Murphys who become entangled with the Garveys as their neighbors. Father John (Kevin Carroll) is the town’s fire department captain, but as the leader of some kind of vigilante group. An already dangerous figure, he becomes more unpredictable after his daughter Evie’s (Jasmin Savoy Brown) disappearance sparks unrest. Matriarch Erika (the superb Regina King) has a quiet mystery around her character that builds towards an explosive confrontation with the townspeople and a heavy exchange with Carrie Coon’s Nora that will go down as one of the most memorable scenes to air on TV last year. Every character is in some way seeking answers or peace, touching on aspects of faith, science or redemption. Every performance is stellar, veering from rousing to gut-wrenching to mysterious and even darkly comical. These characters run the gamut of emotions and the cast ensure you go through them too.
What these changes and additions amount to is a clearer portrayal of what the show is about. The central theme of loss and grieving is supplanted by hope, a more palatable thing for an audience. Earlier last year at the Austin TV Festival, Lindelof spoke of the weight and depression of making the first season of the show something that manifested on screen. An emotional first season seemed preoccupied with setting up several mysteries whereas its second feels about progression and liberation.
No aspect of the show embodies this refined attitude than the opening credits, an exquisitely assembled series of photographs showing families and friends together, on the beach, drinking in a bar, loved ones sharing a kiss. Yet in each picture a figure is missing, replaced by a starry silhouette. This montage is set to the song “Let the Mystery Be” by Iris DeMent, an enigmatic and potent introduction to a show more at ease with it’s themes and also a mantra, embraced by the showrunners and one that should be taken to heart by viewers too.
The most admirable thing about The Leftovers is that is takes its time, a refreshing quality in this era of instant gratification. Verging on tantric, each episode and scene builds towards something, each is an additional piece of the jigsaw. There is not an ounce of fat, everything feeding into the mythology and psychological progress of the ensemble.
The Leftovers has been unfairly maligned by some, viewers more likely unwilling to tackle the show rather than unable. Not to say that it isn’t a hard sell. Grief and fear permeates much of the first season and these themes continue in the second albeit tempered with renewed hope. Quiet contemplative moments build to emotional gut punches and the show never loses the ability to surprise, name one other instance of a man being resurrected through a karaoke rendition of “Homeward Bound”. We all have our shields, belief that or society or faith will shield us. The sudden departure was the great equalizer breaking down boundaries and shattering any preconceptions of righteousness, how people fill the vacuum is an brilliant device to show people at their worst and at their best. Original, very human and often heartbreakingly beautiful.
THE PACKAGEThe Leftovers is an exquisitely made show. What looks like a portrayal of a simple, rural, Texas town often crams in immense detail and often shows more ethereal moments or straight up dream sequences affording the show an artistic quality. The transfer does the high quality nature of the production justice with sharp details, deep colors and well defined details and texture.
This release contains all 10 hour-long episodes of the show as well as a code for a UV copy to download for digital viewing. Disappointingly there is no supplemental content. Considering the drastic change in filming location and use of Austin, TX and its surrounding areas there is a curiosity about the logistics and creative choices this brought to the show that are not satisfied here.
THE BOTTOM LINEThe Leftovers season 2 is an improvement on an already stellar first season and it is a credit to HBO that they support such a challenging and audacious show. While some may find it emotionally taxing or unsatisfying as a potentially incomplete traditional narrative, the best advice is offered during its opening credits song, “let the mystery be”. With the correct approach and expectation, viewers will find The Leftovers to be one of the most emotionally charged, bold and absorbing shows on TV right now.
The Leftovers Season 2 is available on Blu-ray and DVD from February 9th, 2016 from HBO Home Entertainment.